This semester, my sorority sisters voted me as our chapter’s “Selfie Queen.” What I thought was just a little habit I possessed whenever I looked extra fleek on some days, my selfies—err, the number of selfies I took each day—had clearly stood out to some people. I mean, I was even given a sash to commemorate this peculiar achievement. It was funny, but definitely a little embarrassing. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop taking them.

The first ever recorded selfie in history was taken by a chemist and metallurgist named Robert Cornelius in 1839, when he became the first person to look into a camera to capture a selfie portrait, according to business magazine Fast Company. Fast forward over a century later and we eventually have point-and-shoot cameras—a little awkward to hold while taking selfies, but still a useful tool. In 2010, Apple released the famous and beloved front-facing camera and 3 years later, “selfies” became mainstream. (This was also the year the actual word was added to the Oxford Dictionary!)

Today, selfies have a special place in our hearts and our hate lists, depending on how you look at it. They are everywhere—especially on social media. On Instagram alone, there are 285,502,142 posts tagged “selfie” and on my own page, I counted a shocking 25. But while selfies have sometimes garnered a bad rep—“only narcissists would take so many selfies, duck faces are ugly, why not take a real picture”—they can do wonders for one’s confidence and even physical and mental health.

1. Selfies help you love yourself just a little more.

When we take these self-portraits, we allow ourselves to accept our features as well as our imperfections. In addition, the mere act of being in control as we are the photographers of our selfies, makes for a major confidence boost.

2. Smiling changes your mood, and can dramatically influence your day.

While one can display a number of faces while taking selfies, the most popular and common one is the traditional smile. According to the journal Psychology Today, smiling changes your mood. When you’re having a not-so-great day, smiling immediately changes the way you are feeling in a good way.

3. Smiling selfies can increase your happiness.

In addition to changing your mood, smiling releases endorphins—natural pain relievers—and serotonin—commonly linked with “feel good properties,” according to Psychology today. It also boosts your immune system and helps you relax. A study done by the University of California, Irvine claims that taking more smiling selfies increases your chance at happiness, according to article on CBS News. In the study, 41 students took selfies for four weeks and over time, noticed a change. “They were happier and more confident, even when they fake smiled,” the article states.

4. It celebrates you, and all of your beautiful normalcy.

Pamela Rutledge, the faculty director of the media psychology program at the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology, states that selfies “celebrate regular people. There are many more photographs available now of normal people rather than models.” We don’t have to be supermodels to look good. Taking selfies whenever we do our makeup extra special or after finally getting that long-awaited haircut allows normal, everyday people to feel beautiful.

5. It captures memories you don’t want to forget.

Years and decades down the road, looking back at old selfies will be a fun walk down memory lane. Whether it be a photograph at a beautiful place or a simple image of you smiling at the camera, selfies are tangible reminders of the times you had when you were younger.

So make 2017 the year of the selfie again. Make it the year where we unabashedly take millions of them and the year where we also all learn to love ourselves just a little more. So whatever anybody says about your immeasurable selfie-taking, keep on doing you and proudly tap that camera button.